Read an Excerpt
Life's Little Instruction Book
By H. Jackson Brown Jr.
Thomas Nelson
Copyright © 2012 H. Jackson Brown Jr.
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4003-2053-0
Introduction
This book began as a gift to my son, Adam. As he packed his stereo, typewriter, blue blazer, and other necessities for his new life as a college freshman, I retreated to the family room to jot down a few observations and words of counsel I thought he might find useful.
I read years ago that it was not the responsibility of parents to pave the road for their children, but to provide a road map. That's how I hoped he would use these mind-and-heart reflections.
I started writing, and what I thought would take a few hours took several days. I gathered my collection of handwritten notes, typed them up, and put them in a dime-store binder. I walked to the garage and slid it under the front seat of the station wagon.
A few days later his mother and I helped him move into his new dorm room. When he was all settled in, I asked him to come with me to the parking lot. It was time for the presentation. I reached under the car seat and, with words to the effect that this was what I knew about living a happy and rewarding life, handed him the bound pages. He hugged me and shook my hand. It was a very special moment.
Well, somehow those typewritten pages became the little book you're now holding. You may not agree with all the entries, and from your own life experience, I'm sure you could add hundreds more. Obviously, some are more important than others, but all have added a degree of joy, meaning, and efficiency to my life.
A few days after I had given Adam his copy, he called me from his dorm room. "Dad," he said, "I've been reading the instruction book, and I think it's one of the best gifts I've ever received. I'm going to add to it and someday give it to my son."
Every once in a while life hands you a moment so precious, so overwhelming you almost glow. I know. I had just experienced one.
H. J. B.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Life's Little Instruction Book by H. Jackson Brown Jr. Copyright © 2012 by H. Jackson Brown Jr.. Excerpted by permission of Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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